Drawing frame needle bar mechanism



1958 J. 5. DUDLEY 2,847,718

DRAWING FRAME NEEDLE BAR MECHANISM Filed Feb. 10, 1955 3 Sheets-Sheet 1INVENTOR Jim 6. DUDLEY.

l BY WM ATTORNEYS Aug. 19, 1958 .1. s. DUDLEY 2,847,718

' DRAWING FRAME NEEDLE BAR MECHANISM Filed Feb. 10, 1955 s Sheets-Sheet2 JOHN S. Duo/.5).

BY 2 g ATTORNEYS United States Patent DRAWING FRAME NEEDLE BAR MECHANISMJohn S. Dudley, Douglas, Mass., assignor to Whitin Machine Works,Whitinsville, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Application February10, 1955, Serial No. 487,236

3 Claims. (Cl. 19-130) This invention relates to the art of textiledrafting and to a needle bar mechanism for drawing frames and similarmachines for processing wool or other long fibers preparatory tospinning.

In the operation of such mechanisms, it has been customary to move theneedle bars through a closed circuit including a working section, inwhich the needles of certain of the bars are engaged with the fibersunder treatment, followed by an idle or non-working section. The commonpractice has been to control the needle bars by holding them againstfree rotation abount their axes throughout the entire circuit, theprimary purpose, of course, being to establish and maintain a desiredorientation of the bars and their needles with respect to the fibersthroughout the working section of the circuit.

It has been discovered heretofore that improvements in sliver and yarnuniformity result if the needle bars are released from such controlprior to their withdrawal from the fibers, that is, at a point adjacentbut in advance of the end of the working section, so that the needles ofeach bar, as it reaches that point, are free to move with and to bemoved by the fibers themselves. 7

Problems have persisted, however, in the maintenance of such frames dueto the tendency of fibers carried forward by the needles into thenon-working zone to accumulate and ball-up to the extent of clogging theframe and even, in extreme cases of distorting the needles.

The principal objects of the present invention are to provide protectionfor the needles against damage from such cause and to minimize theformation and facilitate the removal of such fiber accumulations.

Other objects and features of the invention will be apparent from thefollowing description of the preferred form of the invention shown inthe accompanying drawings.

In such drawings:

Fig. l is a longitudinal, vertical section on the line 1--1 of Fig. 2,of a drafting unit embodying the invention, parts being omitted forclearness of illustration;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the unit with the top rolls part sectionedremoved, partially broken out and in on the line 22 of Fig.

Figs. 3 and 4 illustrate the needle bars;

Fig. 5 is a section of the line 55 of Fig. 2;.

Fig. 6 is a section on the line 6-6 of Fig. 2; and

Fig. 7 is a broken out sectional view illustrating the action of theneedles.

Referring first to Fig. l of the drawings, the illustrated unit is shownas incorporating a frame 10 on which are mounted top and bottom backrolls, 11, 12, a top front 10. The shaft of roll is the driven shaft ofthe unit 2,847,718 Patented Aug. 19, 1958 and shaft 19 and the shaft ofrolls 14 and 12 are driven from it through gears 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27and 28. The desired draft between the back and front rolls and also thetension draft between shaft 19 and the back rolls is obtained byappropriate selection of these gears.

The needle bar mechanism comprises a frame or carrier in the form a asleeve 29 mounted on and secured to shaft 19 as by set screw 30 andhaving at its ends, flanges or spaced disks 31, 32 provided withperipherial openings for removably supporting the needle bars. Twoseries of such bars are employed, the bars: of one series being like thebar 33 of Fig. 3 and the bars of the other series being like the bar 34of Fig. 4. As will be recognized, the bars ofthe two series are ofsimilar construction but reversed, end for end. The reduced ends 35 ofthe series of bars 33 are located in openings 36 of frame disk 32 andthe opposite ends of these bars seat in slots 37 of disk 31. Similarly,the reduced ends 38 of the series of bars 34 are located in openings 39of disk 31 and the opposite ends of these bars are seated in slots 40 indisk 32. In other words, as shown more particularly in Fig. 6, theperiphery of each frame disk has a series of alternating holes and slotsreceiving the alternately, oppositely disposed needle bars. To completethe bearings for the large ends of the bars and to confine them in theirslots, split collars 41 and 42 are clamped needle bars serves to holderect or substantially normal to the travel of the fibers, the needleswhich are in engagement with the fibers or those which for conveniencemay be referred to as being in the working section of the cycle. It hasbeen found heretofore, however, that if the bars and their needlescontinue to be locked throughout the entire working section of the cycleand the needles withdrawn from fibers simply by the rotation of theframe, the needles adjacent the exit end of the working section tend todrag and cause shading to occur in the resultant sliver and an unevenfinished yarn. This dragging of the needles results from the fact thatthe fibers gripped and positively advanced by the front or drawing rollstravel several times as fast as the fibers held by the slower movingneedles.

each set of needles would be free to be pulled forward by the fibersthemselves, thus insuring that in the indicated zone, the fibers andneedles travel at the same speed.

The primary control of the needle bars is effected by control elementspreferably consisting of crank members mounted on the ends of the bars.Fig. 3, each bar 33 is provided with a head 48 at one end and carrying acrank pin 49 on which is mounted a bearing 50. Similarly, each bar 34 isprovided with a head 51, crankjpin 52 and bearing 53. These crankelements, or more particularly, theirbearings, are arranged to trail therespective bars and to be located in and operated by appropriate camtracks which, by determining the angular positions of the bars, lock theseries of needles in correct relation to the fibers.

In this particular embodiment, two identical cam tracks 54 and 55 areutilized, the tracks being formed in the inner faces of blocks 56 and 57adjacent the outer faces In order to avoid such dragging, provision wasmade for the releasing or Thus, as shown in of disks31 and 32inpositionto receive theouter surfaces.

of bearings 50 and 53. The cam track blocks are seated on the bushings20 and are secured to blocks 21 by studs 58' and 591 Thus; as shaft19:is:rotated, the positions ofthe needle bars andtheir. needlesaredetermined andfaceof a" removable insert 61 normally held in place byscrew 62'. A similar, aligned and removable insert 63 and' screw64-are-provided for track 55. It may be noted here: that in-Fig. forclarity of-illustration, the reduced ends-35of'intervening bars 33v areomitted, as also are the details-of bearing 53 of the bars-34.

It will be apparent from the foregoing that as each needle barreaches apoint where its trailing bearing enters the cam track enlargement, itisreleased from control by-the-cam track and becomes subject t-ocontrol bythe advancing fibers. By'the action ofthe fibers engaged with theneedles of thebar', it is rotated or rocked into. a positionapproximately as indicated by the needles 65 in Figs. 1 and 5.

Referring to Fig. 1, it will be seen that a brush, generally designated70, is mounted on theframe, the axes of the lower front rolls and of theframe being angularly disposed about the axis of the brush. In thispreferred form, the brush carries alternating series of long bristles 71and shorter bristles72, the distance of the frame axis fro-m the brushaxis being such that all of the bristles sweep a. portion of the path ofthe needlesand the distances of the. roller axes from the brush axisbeing such that the short bristles clear and the long. bristles sweepportions of the peripheries of the lower front rolls.

It has been found that fibers tend to accumulate in the zone boundedroughly by the descending needles, the brush andthe rear front'roll,such an accumulation being indicated at 73 in Figs. 1 and 7. that,unless provision is made to prevent it, the accumulation tendstorotate-andj build upin the said zone.

According to the present invention, this tendency is minimized and theneedles are protected in their passage throughthe danger zone byrelieving the inner cam track surface so that the needle bars are freeto rotate clockwise as viewed in Figs. 1, 5 and 7', that is, in theopposite. directionto that inwhich they are rotated as the result oftherelieved portion of the outer cam track surface. AS will. be understood,relieving or recessing the inner. cam tracksurface permitsthe trailingcrankmem-v bers of, theneedle bars to move radially inwardly if anypressure is applied tov the. tips of the needles, as by the indicatedfiber. accumulation. The preferred form of inner cam trackrecessillustrated at 74 in Fig. 5 takes the form of a fiat surface orchord. This relieved portion starts at a point adjacent or opposite tothe relievedportion. of the outer track surface and terminates adjacentbut in advance of the cleaning zone, that is, the zone where the brushis illustrated as sweeping a portion of the path of the needles inFig. 1. Thus, throughout that portion of their path ahead of thecleaning zone where the needles wouldbe likely to encounter the fiberaccumulation they are free to fall back to the extent of being supportedon the following needle bar (Figs. 1 and 7) but are again controlled androtated to extending outwardly in time to be swept by the brush (Fig,1).

It has also been found IthaS. beenfound that as a result of so freeingthe needles they contribute less to the build up of a fiberaccumulation, the fibers more readily finding their way out of theaccumulation zone. Some of them, as indicated at 76 (Figs. 1 and 7)appear to be more readily carried up and over the rear front roll.Others, as indicated at 77 (Fig. 7) are more readily carried forward bythe brush in the space created by the short bristles.

In the light of the foregoing description of the principles of theinvention the following is claimed:

1. A drawing frame needle bar mechanism comprising the combination of arotatable needle bar frame incorporatingrigid, spaced disc portions; aseries of needle bars extending between and rotatably supported by saiddisk portions; needles carried by the bars for entry into and Withdrawalfrom the fibers under treatment upon rotation of said disk portions; astationary cam track adjacent the outer sideof at least one of said diskportions, said track including inner-andoutertrack surfaces; needlebarcrank members engaged with the said track surfaces to position theneedle bars with respect tottheir axes; the.cam track'surfaces havingsuccessive relieved sections adjacent the zone ofwithdrawal of theneedles from the fibers, the said relieved sections located one in theouter track surface and thegother inthe inner track surface and therebyaffording the needle bars freedom of. movement first in one directionand then in the opposite direction.

2. A drawingframe. needle bar, mechanism comprising the combination of arotatable needle bar frame incorpo:

rating rigid, spaced disc portions; a series of needle bars.

extending between and rotatably supported by said disk portions; needlescarried by the bars. for entry into and.

withdrawal from thefibers under treatment upon rotation of said diskportions; astationary camtrack. adjacent the outer side of at least oneof saidv disk portions, said track including inner and outer tracksurfaces; needle bar crank members engaged with the said track surfaces.

to position the needle bars with respect to their axes; thecam tracksurfaces eachhaving a'relieved sectionadapted to free the crank members.and permit rotation. of the needle bars. about their axes, the relievedportion. of. the outer track surface being located adjacent the zone ofwithdrawal of the needles from the fibers and in advance of the relievedportion of the inner cam track surface.

3. In a. drawing: frame, the combination witharotatable needle bar frameincoporating needle bars andxneedles projecting therefrom, apair oflower front rolls and. an upper front roll engagedtherewith, of a.rotary cleaning brush having circumferentiallyalternating series of.long and short bristles, the axeso-f the saidlower front rolls and ofthe said needle bar frame being above and angu-. larly disposed aboutthe axis of the brush, the distance of the frame axis from the brushaxis being such. that all ofthebristles sweep a portion of the path ofthe needles and the distance of'the roller axes from the brush axisbeingsuch that the short bristles. clear and the long bristles sweepportions of the peripheries ofboth of said lower rolls.

References Cited inthe file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS.

106,130 Davis et al. Aug. 9, 1870 2,740,996 Dudley et' al. Apr. 10',1956 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,336. GreatBritain of 1860 6,759 Great Britain of1915 7,959 Switzerland Jan. 15, L894

